[Kindle Fire 2 Android Development] soupmagnet:
The SoupKit

What is SoupKit? At it's heart, SoupKit is for those who are tired of messing around with Windows and are ready to do try something that works. It was created to be "sort of" modular in that after the ADB installer has been installed, other Linux scripts can be installed and run from the command line by just typing the name of the script and without worrying about changing directories or dealing with permissions. It's intended to make the transition from Windows to Linux for Android a little bit easier.

How does it work?

The SoupKit ADB Installer --- FOR ALL KINDLE FIRES

This puts everything where it needs to be, installs any necessary dependencies, installs drivers, configures Linux to run adb and fastboot commands, puts the SoupKit in your $PATH and cleans up after itself, all while taking a fraction of the space needed for the Android SDK. What this means for you is, you will be able open any terminal window and start entering adb or fastboot commands immediately. There's no need to change directories, add sudo commands or certain operators that are confusing to command line newbies ( ./ ). You can enter commands just as you see them in tutorials. No more worrying about “ADB Offline”, “Status Unknown” or “List of devices attached ????????????????”. This alone can make a huge difference for anyone having Kindle Fire problems that can't be fixed in Windows or those who are overwhelmed by the technicalities of configuring Linux for Android.

What you need:

First, you need Linux. Don't worry, it's not as bad as you may think.

Luckily, all Linux distros are free to download and install on your computer. It can also be booted from a USB flash drive so you don't have to wipe out your current OS (although you probably should anyway). You can use a VM, but the only VM that I've found that can detect the Kindle Fire in fastboot mode is Parallels. Vmware won't cut it, and VirtualBox sure as hell won't cut it so don't waste your time with them if you ever need to do anything in fastboot (if you're bricked, you need fastboot).

Probably the best method to get Linux running for a new user is by setting up a Linux LiveUSB.

I'm not going to teach you how to set up a Linux LiveUSB, but there are plenty of FREE programs out there that will not only create a Linux LiveUSB for you, but will download your choice of distro as well, and all you need is a USB flash drive (preferably 8GB or larger). A Google search of “Linux LiveUSB” will offer plenty of choices, although, PendriveLinux seems to be a favorite among most. Just be sure to add plenty of “persistence” (1 or more gigabytes) or you will lose everything every time you reboot. And the better quality of flash drive you can use, the better it will be in the long run. Some flash drives just don't do well and can cause some file system corruption over time (not something you want to be dealing with while you're having Kindle Fire problems).

You'll also have to figure out how to boot your computer from a USB. Check your computer's BIOS manufacturer website for instructions on how to do this.

If you're using a LiveUSB, there is no root/sudo password, just hit enter.

Do not use a USB 3.0 port

Once you have Linux installed and booted, you need to

make sure your Internet is working

. It may take some configuration on your part but it is necessary for the SoupKit to install properly. Luckily, once you have an Internet connection in Linux, the hard part is over.

Don't put the SoupKit.zip on the USB drive before creating the LiveUSB. Instead, use the web browser to navigate to this page and download it once you have Linux running and your Internet connected. Once it's downloaded, you'll likely find it in your Downloads folder.

SoupKit has been tested extensively on all the latest versions of Ubuntu and Mint, but it hasn't really been tested on anything outside of that. Try other distros if you will, but be warned.

To install:

Right-click the “SoupKit.zip”, select “Extract here” open the SoupKit folder and follow the instructions in the README.

Credits:

Don't worry. I didn't forget about you guys. I'll finish this when I have time. In the meantime, you know who you are, and thank you.

Is that all?

NOPE. What SoupKit would be complete without a little something to go with it? SEE POST #2